Lamp filter and lampholder assembly

ABSTRACT

AN ILLUMINATED SIGNAL UNIT HAS AN INSULATIVE LAMP BASE WITH OPPOSITE UPPER AND LOWER FACES AND A SIDE WALL CONSTRUCTION. A PLURALITY OF LAMP RECEIVING CYLINDRICAL OPENINGS IN THE LAMP BASE EXTEND THROUGH SAID LAMP BASE. EACH CYLINDRICAL OPENING HAS A RADIALLY OUTWARD LAMP FILTER FLANGE RECEIVING GROOVE BETWEEN SAID UPPER AND LOWER FACES. A LAMP FILTER INSERTING AND REMOVING SLOT EXTENDS FROM SAID GROOVE TO SAID SIDE WALL CONSTRUCTION. EACH OPENING RECEIVES A LAMP WITH A NEUTRAL SLEEVE IN SAID OPENING, AN ILLUMINATING LAMP BUBL EXTENDING OUT OF ONE OF SAID FACES, AND A LIVE CONTACT FLANGE EXTENDING OUT OF THE OTHER OF SAID FACES. EACH OF SUCH GROOVES AND CYLINDRICAL OPENINGS RECEIVES A FLEXIBLE LAMP FILTER WITH A FILTER FLANGE IN SUCH GROOVE AND A FILTER BULB EXTENDING ALONG SAID CYLINDRICAL OPENING AND OVER THE LAMP BULB. EACH FILTER CAN BE FLEXED TO BE INSERTABLE IN AND REMOVABLE FROM SUCH GROOVE THROUGH AN ADJACENT SLOT.

1971 A. A; DI PILLA I LAMP FILTER AND LAMPHOLDER ASSEMBLY Filed Jan. 4, 1968 FIG-4 INVENTOR. ANTHONY A. DiPlLLA HIS ATTORNEYS United States Patent Oflice 3,560,967 Patented Feb. 2, 1971 3,560,967 LAMP FILTER AND LAMPHOLDER ASSEMBLY Anthony A. Di Pilla, Philadelphia, Pa., assignor to Robertshaw Controls Compan, Richmond, Va., 2 corporation of Delaware Filed Jan. 4, 1968, Ser. No. 695,639 Int. Cl. G09f 9/00 US. Cl. 340-381 20 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE An illuminated signal unit has an insulative lamp base with opposite upper and lower faces and a side wall con struction. A plurality of lamp receiving cylindrical openings in the lamp base extend through said lamp base. Each cylindrical opening has a radially outward lamp filter flange receiving groove between said upper and lower faces. A lamp filter inserting and removing slot extends from said groove to said side wall construction. Each opening receives a lamp with a neutral sleeve in said opening, an illuminating lamp bulb extending out of one of said faces, and a live contact flange extending out of the other of said faces. Each of such grooves and cylindrical openings receives a flexible lamp filter with a filter flange in such groove and a filter bulb extending along said cylindrical opening and over the lamp bulb. Each filter can be flexed to be insertable in and removable from such groove through an adjacent slot.

This invention relates to a lamp filter and lampholder assembly.

A feature of this invention includes an insulative lamp base having opposite upper and lower faces and a side wall construction. Such base has a plurality of lamp receiving cylindrical openings extending through said base. Each of said openings has a radially outward lamp filter flange receiving groove between such upper and lower faces and a lamp filter inserting and removing slot extending from such groove to said side wall construction. Each of such openings receives an illuminating lamp with a neutral lamp sleeve in such opening. The lamp bulb extends out of one of said faces and a live contact lamp flange extends out of the other of said faces. Each of such grooves and cylindrical openings receives a flexible lamp filter with a filter flange in such groove and a filter bulb extending along said cylindrical opening and around such lamp bulb. Such filter is insertable in and removable from said groove and cylindrical opening through an adjacent slot in such lamp base.

Other features of this invention are apparent from this description, the appended claimed subject matter, and/or the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an illuminated signal unit, according to this invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross section of a lamp base and a push button of the unit of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a top view of the lamp base shown in FIG. 2 without any lamps inserted therein, and with a lamp filter being inserted into the filter flange groove.

FIG. 4 is a view transverse to FIG. 3, partly in cross section and partly in elevation, and taken along the line 4-4 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is an upward view of the lamp base taken generally along the line 55 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 6 is a side elevation of a modified lamp filter.

Certain words may be used in this specification and claimed subject matter which indicate direction, relative position and the like. These words are used for the sake of clearness and brevity. However, such words are used only in connection with the views of the drawings, and

parts so described may have entirely different direction and relative position when in actual use. Examples of such words are vertical, horizontal, upper, lower and the like.

A signal unit, according to this invention, is generally indicated at 20 in FIG. 1. Such unit may have an insulative lamp base 22, a push button or push button means 24, a switch means 26, a switch means actuating plunger 28, and a switch means actuating rod 30. The rod 30 may be actuated by the plunger 28 in response to the pushing in and/or releasing actions of the push button means 24 to actuate and unactuate the switch means 26. The signal unit shown in FIG. 1 may be taken as illustrative of any known construction in which the lamp base 22 may be installed, removed, and used in a manner so that the lamps to be described may be illuminated and extinguished in accordance with the conditions controlled by the push button 24.

The lamp base 22 may be made of an insulative material and molded as a single homogeneous base, or molded in two separate sections which are not shown, but which may separate the base substantially along a separating line 32. If such base is made in separated sections, they may be secured together by rivets 33 which extend through the base 22 and which may be used as further to be described.

The base 22 may have upper and lower faces 34 and 36 respectively, and a side wall construction 38 which may be rectangular, if desired, and may include straight side Walls 38.

A plurality of lamp receiving, generally cylindrical, openings or opening means 40 may be provided in the lamp base 22. These openings may be generally cylindrical and may each have a radially outward lamp filter flange receiving groove or groove means 42 between said upper and lower faces 34 and 36. Each of the grooves 42 may have a lamp filter inserting and removing slot or slot means 44 extending from such groove 42 to the side wall construction 3-8. Each of the opening means 40 receives a lamp 46 with a neutral cylindrical lamp sleeve 48 in the opening means 40. An illuminating lamp bulb 50 extends out of one of said faces, such as face 34, and live contact lamp flange 52 extends out of the other of said faces, such as face 36.

Each of said groove means 42 and opening means 40 receives a flexible lamp filter means or filter 54 with a filter flange 56 in said groove means 42 and a filter bulb 58 extending along said cylindrical opening means 40 and over said lamp bulb 50. Said filter 54 may be flexible, and made of any well known material used in the lamp filters now on the market, such as rubber, which may be silicon rubber, in connection with illuminated signals of this type. The filter 54 is insertable in and removable from the groove means 42 through a respective slot or slot means 44. This insertion and removal may be accomplished by flexing the filter 54, as shown at 54A, in FIG. 3, which shows one of the filters flexed and being either inserted in or removed from the opening 40, with its flange 56A to be inserted in, or removed from, the groove 42.

The lamp base 22 may have a neutral contact plate 60 which may be riveted to its bottom face 36 by means of the rivets 33. The rivets 33 may also secure together sections of the lamp base 38, if such lamp base should be made in separate sections along the line 32, as described, but not shown. The neutral plate 60 may have flexible resilient tongues or extensions 62 formed therein which extend into slots 64 in the openings 40. The flexible tongues or contacts 62 engage the neutral sleeves 48 of the illuminating lamps to establish an illuminating circuit through the filament of the lamp in combination with the live contacts 68 in the flanges 52. The neutral plate may have openings 65 which may be aligned with the openings in the base 22.

The signal unit 20 may have a plurality of live upwardly biased contacts 66 which are upwardly biased and engage the live lamp contacts 68. The unit 20 may also have a neutral or a plurality of neutral contacts 70 which engage the neutral plate 60 at any suitable point, such as at the rivets 33, if desired. The contacts 66 and 70 may be connected to electrical supply lines in a well known manner which is believed not necessary to describe. The construction is such that during certain operations of the unit 20, which are well known, the lamps are illuminated by energizing their electric filaments by a circuit established from the live contacts 68 to the neutral contacts 62.

If desired, the lamp filters may be as shown in FIG. 6, in which the lamp filter 72 may be similar to the lamp filters 54, except that a portion thereof may be cut away at 74, so that unfiltered light may pass through the opening 76, to illuminate part of the lens 78 of the push button, in a novel manner.

The push button 24 may have a vertical actuator 80, which may be in the form of a vertical bar which passes through an opening 82 in the lamp base 22 and has mechanism which actuates the plunger 28 in a manner to actuate and unactuate the rod 30 and the switch means 26. An opening 83 in the neutral plate may also be provided for the passage of actuator 80. The vertical bar 80 may be attached to the push button casing 84 by the horizontal bar 86.

The lamp filter 54 is first assembled into the lamp holder or lamp base 22 with the lamp filter flange 56 positioned in the lampholder groove 42, as shown in FIG. 2. The lamp filter 54 may be assembled by collapsing the filter sides, FIG. 3, and inserting it sideways through the slot 44, FIG. 3. Alternatively the lamp filter 54 may be inserted through the top or bottom face 34 or 36 and also through the opening in the plate 60, at the end of the opening 40. When the lamp filter flange 56 is positioned in the groove 42, the filter cannot be removed unless the sides of the filter are collapsed. This locking effect is due to the flange diameter, which is greater than the diameter of the opening 40. Any up and down motion of the filter 54 is controlled by the upper and lower surfaces of the groove 42. The lamp 46 is then inserted from the bottom or lower face 36 and from the opening 65 in the plate 60', of the lampholder or base 22. The distance which the lamp 46 is inserted into lamp base 22 is limited when the flange 52 of the lamp comes into contact with the bottom or lower face 36 of the lampholder 22, or comes into contact with the lower face of the neutral plate 60, depending on the shape of the plate 60. Once the lamp 46 is insetrted into the lamp base 22, and into the lamp filter 54, such lamp filter cannot be removed unless the lamp 46 is first removed.

It is thus to be seen that a new, useful and unobvious lamp filter and lampholder assembly has been provided.

While the embodiment of this invention now preferred has been disclosed, as required by statute, other forms may be used, all coming within the scope of the invention, and claimed subject matter, which follows.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination, an illuminated signal unit having an insulative lamp base with opposite upper and lower faces and a side Wall construction, at least one lamp receiving, generally cylindrical, opening means in said lamp base extending through said lamp base and interrupting said upper and lower faces, said cylindrical opening means having a radially outward lamp filter flange receiving groove means between said upper and lower faces with said groove means opening into said opening means, said opening means receiving a lamp with a neutral lamp sleeve in said opening means, said lamp having an illuminating lamp bulb extending out of one of said faces, and a live contact lamp flange extending out of the other of said faces, and said groove means and cylindrical opening means receiving a flexible lamp filter with a filter flange in said groove means and a filter bulb extending along said cylindrical opening means and outside and over said lamp bulb, said filter being insertable in and removable from said groove means and cylindrical opening means when said lamp is not in said cylindrical opening means.

2. A combination according to claim 1 in which said lamp base has a plurality of said opening means and groove means to receive a plurality of lamps and filters similar to said lamp and filter.

3. A combination according to claim 2 in which said lower face is provided with a metallic neutral plate having flexible contact tongues extending into said plurality of said opening means to contact the neutral cylindrical lamp sleeves of said plurality of lamps to be inserted in said plurality of opening means and groove means.

4. A combination according to claim 3 in which said neutral plate is secured to said lamp base by at least one rivet, which passes through said neutral plate and said lamp base.

5. A combination according to claim 4 in which a push button is provided above said lamp base and has a vertical actuator extending through a central opening in said lamp base and said neutral plate.

6. A combination according to claim 5 in which said lamp base has a rectangular side wall construction, and generally flat upper and lower faces.

7. A combination according to claim 6 in which there are four opening means and groove means adjacent the corners of said lamp base.

8. A combination according to claim 1 including a lamp filter inserting and removing slot means extending from said groove means to said side wall, and wherein said flexible lamp filter is insertable in and removable from said groove means through said slot means, when said lamp is not in said cylindrical opening means.

9. A combination according to claim 8 in which said lamp base has a plurality of said opening means, groove means and slot means to receive a plurality of lamps and filters similar to said lamp and filter.

10. A combination according to claim 9 in which said lower face is provided with a metallic plate having flexible contact tongues extending into said plurality of said opening means to contact the neutral cylindrical lamp sleeves of said plurality of lamps to be inserted in said plurality of opening means and groove means.

11. An insulative lamp base with opposite upper and lower faces and a side wall construction, at least one lamp receiving, generally cylindrical, opening means in said lamp base extending through said lamp base and interrupting said upper and lower faces, said cylindrical opening means having a radially outward lamp filter flange receiving groove means between said upper and lower faces with said groove means opening into said opening means, said opening means being adapted to receive a lamp with a neutral lamp sleeve adapted to be disposed in said opening means and having an illuminating lamp bulb adapted to extend out of one of said faces with a live contact lamp flange adapted to extend out of the other of said faces, said groove means and cylindrical opening means. being adapted to receive a flexible lamp filter with a filter flange in said groove means and a filter bulb extending along said cylindrical opening means and outside and over said lamp bulb, said filter being adapted to be insertable in and removable from said groove means and cylindrical opening means only when said lamp is not in said cylindrical opening means.

12. An insulative lamp base according to claim 11 in which said lamp base has a plurality of said opening means and groove means adapted to receive a plurality of lamps and filters similar to said lamp and filter.

13. An insulative lamp base according to claim 12 in which said lower face is provided with a metallic neutral plate having flexible contact tongues extending into said plurality of said opening means so as to be adapted to contact the neutral cylindrical lamp sleeves of said plurality of lamps to be inserted in said plurality of opening means and groove means.

14. An insulative lamp base according to claim 13 in which said neutral plate is secured to said lamp base by at least one rivet, which passes through said neutral plate and said lamp base.

15. An insulative lamp base according to claim 14 in which a push button is adapted to be provided above said lamp base and has a vertical actuator adapted to extend through a central opening in said lamp base and said neutral plate.

16. An insulative lamp base according to claim 15 in which said lamp base has a rectangular side wall construction, and generally flat upper and lower faces.

17. An insulative lamp base according to claim 16 in which there are four opening means and groove means adjacent the corners of said lamp base.

18. An insulative lamp base according to claim 11 in which said base has a lamp filter inserting and removing slot means extending from said groove means to said side wall, and wherein said flexible lamp filter is adapted to be insertable in and removable from said groove means through said slot means only when said lamp is not in said cylindrical opening means.

19. An insulative lamp base according to claim 18 in which said lamp base has a plurality of said opening means, groove means and slot means adapted to receive a plurality of lamps and filters similar to said lamp and filter.

20. An insulative lamp base according to claim 19 in which said lower face is provided with a metallic plate having flexible contact tongues extending into said plurality of said opening means so as to be adapted to contact the neutral cylindrical lamp sleeves of said plurality of lamps adapted to be inserted in said plurality of opening means and groove means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,221,078 11/1940 Dotterer 340'38l 3,220,001 11/1965 Hallerberg 34038l THOMAS E. HABECKER, Primary Examiner M. SLOBASKY, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 340-666, 383 

